Tag Archives: Catholic Church

The Daily Telegraph reports: It’s good enough for the people and good enough for the government — but that’s not good enough for the Catholic church. While the Yes vote for gay marriage was a convincing 61.6 per cent, the country’s most influential Catholic cleric Sydney Archbishop Anthony Fisher reckons that is not a majority. Because about 20 per cent …

The Guardian reports: A new statue at a Catholic school in Adelaide has been covered up and will be remodeled over issues with it being “potentially suggestive”. The statue of St Martin de Porres at Blackfriars Priory was unveiled recently and depicts the saint handing a loaf of bread to a young boy. However, the unfortunate placement of the bread …

Via press release: A new website aimed at offering an array of resources for persons involved in the pastoral care of men and women who experience same-sex attractions (SSA) has been launched by Courage & EnCourage International, the Catholic Church’s officially recognized ministry in the field. Truth & Love offers a wide range of content on the subject of homosexuality, …

The Chicago Tribune reports: It may have been a critical and commercial hit, but actor Mark Wahlberg says he’s prayed to God for forgiveness for his role in the 1997 movie “Boogie Nights.” Standing next to Cardinal Blase Cupich on Friday night in Chicago, Wahlberg, a committed Catholic, told Chicago Inc., “I just always hope that God is a movie …

The Associated Press reports: The Republican-led Senate on Monday confirmed Callista Gingrich, wife of former House Speaker Newt Gingrich, as the U.S. ambassador to the Vatican. Senators approved her nomination, 70-23, with more than 20 Democrats joining Republicans in backing her for the post. Newt Gingrich is an ally of Trump, who had announced in May that he would nominate …

Catholic News Service reports: An arrest warrant has been issued in Canada for Monsignor Carlo Capella, the Vatican diplomat recalled from service in Washington in late August, who already was the subject of a Vatican criminal investigation involving child pornography. Police in Windsor, Ontario, issued a statement Sept. 28 saying, “A Canada-wide arrest warrant has been issued for Carlo Capella, …

From a press release published today by Christian Newswire: Australia is in the middle of a government mandated postal survey to decide the future of marriage between a man and a woman. The polls are predicting a defeat for those who believe in the biblical definition of marriage. Australian Christians are asking for prayer from all over the world for …

The Associated Press reports: A high-ranking priest working in the Vatican’s embassy in Washington has been recalled after U.S. prosecutors asked for him to be charged there and face trial in a child pornography investigation, Vatican and U.S. officials said Friday. The diplomat was suspected of possessing, but not producing or disseminating, child pornography including images of pre-pubescent children, a …

Politico reports: Former White House chief strategist Steve Bannon’s assertion that Roman Catholic bishops “need illegal immigrants” is so “preposterous,” “insulting” and “ridiculous” that it doesn’t merit a response, Cardinal Timothy Dolan said Thursday. “You might imagine I was rather befuddled to see it,” Dolan said. “I don’t really wanna care to go into what I think is a preposterous …

The Hill reports: Former White House chief strategist Stephen Bannon in a new interview slammed the Catholic Church for its stance on immigration, saying leaders “need illegal aliens to to fill the churches.” Bannon told “60 Minutes” that the Catholic Church has been “terrible about” immigration when Charlie Rose noted that Cardinal Timothy Dolan in New York opposed President Trump’s …

The Associated Press reports: Callista Gingrich, Donald Trump’s nominee to be ambassador to the Vatican, told skeptical Democrats on Tuesday that the president wants the United States to be an environmental leader even after pulling the country out of the landmark accord aimed at combating global warming. Testifying before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, Gingrich said Trump is committed to …

The Associated Press reports: Cardinal George Pell, a top adviser to Pope Francis, took a leave of absence as the Vatican’s financial chief Thursday to fight criminal charges in his native Australia that alleged he committed sexual assault years ago. Pell forcefully denied the accusations, denounced what he called a “relentless character assassination” in the media and said he would …

The Guardian reports: Cardinal George Pell, Australia’s most senior Catholic and the third-ranking official in the Vatican, has been charged with multiple sexual offences by police. The charges were served on Pell’s legal representatives in Melbourne on Thursday and they have been lodged also at Melbourne magistrates court. He will appear at Melbourne magistrates court on 18 July. “Cardinal Pell …

The Washington Post reports: The bishop of the Catholic Diocese of Springfield, Ill., is calling on priests there to deny Holy Communion and even funeral rites to people in same-sex unions unless they show “some signs of repentance” for their relationships before death. The decree by Bishop Thomas Paprocki also said that people “living publicly” in same-sex marriages may not …

ABC News reports: The New York State Senate struck down a bill Wednesday that would have loosened the statute of limitations of child molestation for the 11th year in a row. “New York has the worst laws on the books anywhere in the country pertaining to the statute of limitations for crimes of child sexual abuse,” Senator and Bill Sponsor …

From a press release published today by Christian Newswire: Daniel Mattson’s life was marked by constant turmoil between his faith in God and his sexual attractions toward other boys, beginning when he was 6 years old. Finding the conflict between his homosexual desires and the teachings of his church too great, he assumed he was gay, turned his back on …

Deutsche Welle reports: The 17th annual ‘Equality Parade’ took place as Poland’s conservative government continues to oppose civil unions for same-sex couples. Organizers put the number at 50,000, while the police said 13,000 attended the parade, with 40 foreign embassies, including those of France and the US, expressing their support. The parade was intended to “draw attention to the rights …

The Hill reports: Pope Francis on Wednesday gave President Trump a copy of his 2015 encyclical letter on the environment and climate change. Trump responded to the gifts by saying: “Well, I’ll be reading them,” according to pool reports. The Trump administration has been pushing to roll back Obama-era regulations on the environment. At the beginning of the meeting, the …

CNN reports: Callista Gingrich, the wife of former House Speaker Newt Gingrich, is the preferred nominee to be the next ambassador to the Vatican. The White House hopes to announce her nomination before President Donald Trump meets with Pope Francis on May 24 in Rome. The decision to nominate Gingrich has been made, but the announcement has taken longer than …

The Washington Post reports: Pope Francis used a world forum dedicated to promoting cutting-edge ideas to spread his own revolutionary message: “We all need each other.” “When there is an ‘us,’ there begins a revolution,” the world’s most powerful religious leader told the room of scientists, academics, tech innovators, investors and cultural elites in a surprise videotaped message at the …